Ruby, Calcinosis Cutis

[alfred]

Hello, I have been reading this forum now for about a week and will share a little bit of mine & Ruby's journey. She was diagnosed with Cushings just before Christmas . My vet was very kind to give me all the information she could and then I went to work reading and searching and reading some more. She is a 10 year old Boxer and our third boxer in 27 years. She is the sweetest little girl. I l
& my husband love her to death. ( Irony ) to say that. I chose not to do the heavy drugs. So many potential side effects. We winter in Arizona ( we are from Alberta /Canada. ) , so I researched all winter and decided to try the holistic route. There were folks had some success with yogurt and pumpkin which I do daily. I also went to a chinese herbalist and spent $ 400.00 on Cushings Q1 & Yuechung . Not sure they have helped. I am going to start with " Cushex Drops and Flax Hull Lignans next . She has severe calsinosis cutis. So bad !
Going to try adding a pic.

Moderator's Note: I have move your first post for your girl Ruby into our main forum. This will give other members a chance to respond to you, & offer any help & feedback that might be appropriate.

[alfred]

Thank you, sure want to hear from others.

[spdd]

Welcome to the forum. You've come to the right place for information re Ruby. I'm not experienced enough and in the middle of learning but others here have years of knowledge to share.

[goldengirl88]

Hi:
Welcome to the group. Unfortunately these natural methods and Cushex drops do not work on Cushings. If they did everyone on here would be using them, and there would be no need to have this forum. The only method currently working to control cortisol production is Trilostane, or lysodren. There are many people who have come on here and decided to use Cushex etc. All you are doing is wasting your money on something that will not help your dog. I am sorry to sound so callous but that is the plain and simple truth. I hope you reconsider your choice for the sake of your dog. No one on here really wants to put their dogs on these drugs, but that is the only method available that will control the cortisol. I didn't want to do it either, but if I hadn't I think my dog would not be here. The group is to advise you and help you through this. The people on here have more experience with this disease than the vets do. We are also here to support you, even though we may not agree with your choice of treatment. That is an individual choice, we are only sharing our knowledge to help you. Blessings
Patti

[alfred]

Somehow I guess I know you are right. Thank you for your reply.
I just had such hopes and the information one reads gives that hope but this little girl is my best freind and there has not been one day without a bucket of tears over the havoc this is having on her body and my mind. She is loosing ground every day. Today is a particular bad day. I did see my vet yesterday to clean her sores and she was shocked at the way the cc had spread. I am going to talk to her today and see if she feels if we could still do a drug trial.
Thanks again...thanks for the blessing I will take it gladly.
Ruby's mom

[Trixie]

If it helps for you to know my dog is on Vetoryl/Trilostane for 4 months now with no ill effects. She definitely feels better with her cortisol controlled.
I can't predict the future and at some point perhaps the drug may cause side effects but right now it's working well. If managed carefully with a good vet, the medication can help your dog to feel better.
My suggestion is starting on a low dose...recommended is 1mg per pound of the dog. This was the approach my vet took and though there has been a lot of dose tweaking along the way we never had any problems of too much medication.
If you do opt for the drug I hope it works well for Ruby!

Barbara

[alfred]

Again thank you so much.

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi and welcome to you and Ruby!

The CC makes this tough and is just about 100% proof of Cushing's - it is extremely rare for a non-cush pup to get CC. Unfortunately, unless the cortisol is controlled, the CC will not likely be controlled. And the only things that have the potential to truly control the excess cortisol are either Mitotane (Lysodren) or Vetoryl (Trilostane). Both are life-saving drugs for our cush babies.

Now, Cushing's is not a death sentence, even with the CC. That can make it a bit more difficult and time consuming but Ruby can still live out her full life span and beyond. So don't give up hope. Talk to her vet about getting this diagnosis confirmed and which treatment they are most comfortable using with Ruby. Get copies of all testing on Ruby from now on, the actual results, not the invoices. If you don't mind, post those results here and we will do our best to help you understand what they mean. This will help us help you a great deal. I'm not very familiar with TCM herbs but I'm sure the Holistic vet will be willing to work with both approaches to make sure they both benefit Ruby - most are.

The pumpkin (plain not pie filling type) and yogurt won't help the Cushing's but they shouldn't hurt either so if she tolerates them I would keep using them. The flax lignans are part of a treatment for a form called Atypical in which cortisol is normal but other hormones are not (with the CC it is unlikely Ruby has this form) and is used in combination with melatonin. The flax lignans won't help the cushing's but as long as the extra fiber isn't an issue for her, they shouldn't hurt either.

A tip since you travel often - start a file to keep at home of all tests on Ruby from now on. This way should you ever need to take her to a different vet, you will walk in the door with all her info in hand. Keeping a daily diary of her eating, drinking, peeing, sleep patterns, moods, any changes you notice in behavior, and so on will also be very helpful not only to you but to her vets. This will help you see patterns that might otherwise be missed...and if you're memory is anything like mine, well...remembering what happened last week is sometimes a challenge! Members who deal with CC have said taking pictures periodically helps them see changes with the skin too.

I'm glad you found us and look forward to learning more as time passes. No matter what you choose to do, we will do all we can to help you.
Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[Squirt's Mom]

I have edited the title of Ruby's thread so others dealing with CC will know you are facing the same and hopefully come chat with you a bit.

[Budsters Mom]

Hello and welcome from me too.
You have come to the right place! There are many K9Cushing's angels standing by to help and stay with you every step of the way. They love details, test results, any information you can get your hands on. The more the better. We will do all we can to help, but be ready for lots of questions! So again, welcome to you and Ruby.